Planning an American Art Field Trip to the Art Institute

Terra Teacher Lab Planning an American Art Field Trip to the Art Institute Take the following steps to plan for students self-guided learning in the American galleries of the Art Institute of Chicago (planning worksheets are attached): 1. Decide how you want the field trip to relate to your curriculum. Define themes you want to support and goals for the trip. 2. Visit the Art Institute s American galleries in advance of your trip and choose a gallery or selection of galleries you want students to visit. Note that the collection is arranged chronologically and that several galleries have a theme or focus. American art (pre-1950) is also on view in the following locations: the new American Folk Art Gallery (Gallery 227), American Decorative Arts (Galleries 158-159), Photography (Galleries 1-4), Architecture and Design Galleries (Galleries 283-285), Prints and Drawings (Galleries 124-127), and sometimes in Special Exhibitions galleries (ongoing, check http://www.artic.edu/aic/exhibitions/current). 3. Choose groups or kinds of artworks you want students to see and note their locations (the gallery number). Recommendation: limit yourself to 3 6 works (or groups of artworks) stations where students will stop in the American galleries. Caution: Works of art are sometimes taken off-view by museum staff, so plan with alternative artworks in mind. 4. Learn about the works you want students to see. Read gallery labels. Note which institution (Art Institute or Terra Foundation) owns the works that most interested you so you can visit the respective Web sites to learn more: - http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/amer - http://www.terraamericanart.org/collections/code/emuseum.asp Use the My Collection feature on the Art Institute Web site to learn what artworks are on view in the galleries (artwork location information is updated every day), to select artworks, and to add your own notes. Staff at the Art Institute s Crown Family Educator Resource Center (ERC) can help you find more information about American art in both collections and can share ideas for self-guiding students at the museum. For hours and information visit http://www.artic.edu/aic/education/trc/index.html or call or email: (312) 443-3719; erc@artic.edu. Field Trip Planner 1

5. Identify activities for self-guided learning. Think about what you can you do at the museum that you can t do in your classroom. What will you ask students to do that will address your learning goals and help them look at and think about each work of art you selected? For example: will they answer questions you provide, draft their own questions, write a poem or post-card, make a sketch, or compare two works of art, etc.? 6. Plan pre- and post-visit strategies. How will you prepare students for the museum visit and what they will see and do in the galleries? How will you debrief afterward to review and reinforce what they learned? Briefly describe your pre- and post-visit plans in the attached. Field Trip Planner 2

Terra Teacher Lab Field Trip Planning Outline Teacher: School: Curriculum Connection/Subject or Topic (e.g., American literature, Civil War, symbols) Goals for Visit Theme (e.g., American Identity, Diversity, etc.) PREPARE Pre-Visit Activities in the Classroom Field Trip Planner 3

AT THE MUSEUM INTRODUCE: How will you start? How will you orient students? What will they do? DEVELOP: Which galleries will they visit and what will students see and do? Galleries (locations of works you want students to see note gallery numbers) Artworks (names/titles of a few works per location that you want students to read ) Gallery number Key idea Artwork title, artist, collection Activity Pages for designing individual learning activities for the visit follow this outline. Field Trip Planner 4

CONCLUDE What will you ask at the end of the visit? What will students do? EXPAND & REINFORCE Post-visit activities in the classroom Gallery Learning Activity Plans The following pages are student worksheet templates, set up to help you assign and structure learning activities in the galleries. The templates include a place to put a stop number. If your class is divided into groups, you may also want to use this space to identify a group, such as Group A, Stop 1, Group B, Stop 2, etc. Five pages are included. Make additional copies if your tour covers more than five stops in the museum. Field Trip Planner 5

Field Trip to the Art Institute of Chicago American Galleries Guide for Students Stop number: Recommendation: Insert thumbnail images if available on the Art Institute or Terra Foundation Web sites. Gallery number: Key Idea: Artworks to look for: Activity: Field Trip Planner 6

Field Trip to the Art Institute of Chicago American Galleries Guide for Students Recommendation: Insert thumbnail images if available on the Art Institute or Terra Foundation Web sites. Stop number: Gallery number: Key Idea: Artworks to look for: Activity: Field Trip Planner 7